Aggression replacement training program
Our aggression replacement training program—also known as ART—helps young people to deal with their anger and aggression.
If your child has been found guilty of a violent offence, or has shown violent behaviour, Youth Justice may refer them to take part in this training program.
A court may also make aggression replacement training an extra condition of your child’s order.
What they will learn
The training has 3 parts:
- skill streaming—learning appropriate ways to respond to different situations and how to talk to someone about what is upsetting them
- anger control—learning how to keep control and calm down when they feel angry about something
- moral reasoning—learning to see what it’s like to be in someone else’s shoes and see how their anger can affect other people.
Your child will also get to practise using these skills in the real world.
Who will be there
The program will be run by Youth Justice staff who are specially trained in delivering the aggression replacement training program. The trainers will be the same people each week.
Aggression replacement training is a group program. Your child will complete the program with 4 or 5 other young people. No one new will join the group after the first week.
Length of the program
The program will run for 10 weeks. There will usually be 3 sessions a week. Each session lasts about one hour. If your child misses a session, they will need to make it up.
Your child’s youth justice caseworker will talk to them about when the program will start. They will also talk about how the program runs.
The program is intensive and structured over the 10 weeks so that it can help your child over a period of time to develop and practise skills for conflict resolution.
Being referred to the program
Your child can only be referred by:
- a court
- Youth Justice service centre staff
- youth detention centre staff
Further information
- Learn more about young people and the justice system.
- Locate your closest youth justice service centre.
- Find out more about the changing habits and reaching targets program.
- Read about how you can help and support your child.